You’d be right on the money if you coined UConn’s win over DePaul a “blowout.” Somehow, the next three games of the Big East first round were much, much worse.
I heard tickets for the night double-header were going for $6. That’s about $5.95 too much.
Seton Hall's Jordan Theodore (AP)
The second session featured two ugly — scratch that, horrific — performances from Rutgers and Providence, who were blown out by a combined 52 points by Villanova and Seton Hall (not exactly powerhouses).
The two main things to take away from Tuesday: UConn avoided a major slip-up that could have cost it an NCAA bid and Seton Hall, humiliated by DePaul in the regular season finale, helped itself, too. Obviously, Wednesday will have NCAA tournament implications, particularly for UConn, West Virginia and Seton Hall.
I’ve been running regular segment on the blog called “UConn On the Bubble” for about two weeks. I decided it was time to switch up the name.
Ryan Boatright (AP)
Now, I’m not saying victories over Pitt and DePaul (they’ve combined for eight Big East wins) are monumental accomplishments, but as UConn heads into the second day of the Big East tournament, its hard to call it a true “bubble team.”
Look around the country — the resumes of other bubble teams, numbers-wise, pale in comparison to UConn’s. And the Huskies are playing much better than they were in mid-February when they were unequivocally failing the “eyeball test.”
Unless West Virginia wins by 20 tomorrow or a slew of non-tournament teams obtain at-large bids, UConn should be safe. Check their resume below.
RECORD: 19-12 (8-10 Big East)
BEST WINS: at Notre Dame, vs. Harvard, vs. Florida State, vs. West Virginia
WORST LOSSES: at Rutgers, at Providence, vs. Central Florida, at Louisville (by 21), at Seton Hall
SOS: 3
RPI: 34
TOP 50 RECORD: 5-6
EYEBALL TEST: Getting better. UConn is playing well in spurts, but still can become logy (Jim Calhoun word) at times. A win over West Virginia would get UConn to 20 — I’ve said that’s the magic number — and absolutely lock up a bid.
TODAY’S PROJECTIONS:
ESPN — No. 10 seed vs. No. 7 Gonzaga (Joe Lunardi has 10 Big East teams in the field).
Sports Illustrated: South Florida may need to win a quarterfinal against Notre Dame to really be on the right side of the cutline. The UConn-West Virginia game ices things for the winner and leaves the loser somewhat nervous. — Andy Glockner
CBS: “UConn’s not in the field yet. I don’t think beating DePaul squarely gets the Huskies in with such a token win. In basketball terms, today had no upside and all downside. But in coaching terms, Calhoun’s presence and improved energy means a lot to his team, the program, UConn’s fans. But now it’s clear to see his post coach still means the most to him — as much now as ever.” — Matt Norlander
From the longest longshot to the prohibitive favorite, click the “show caption” icon and take a look at Hearst Connecticut Media Group’s Big East tournament odds.
Five things that could make or break UConn this week at the Garden:
1. Shabazz Napier needs to shoot: Two Napiers have showed up throughout the year. One is a scoring point guard, a guy who looks for his own shot, pushes the tempo and still manages to get teammates involved. The other is somewhat passive and, at times, hesitant to shoot the ball. When Napier scores 20 or more points, the Huskies are 7-2.
2. Roscoe Smith’s minutes: Smith’s energy is contagious, and there’s no reason he shouldn’t play 30 minutes per game in this tournament.
3. The 3-ball: It’s killed the Huskies on both ends. In his last 28 attempts, Jeremy Lamb has made just seven 3-pointers. That’s three less than Providence hit in last Tuesday’s upset at the Dunkin Donuts Center.
4. Andre Drummond: The freshman isn’t much different than the rest of UConn’s roster – he’s been inconsistent throughout the whole season. When Drummond is comfortable and confident, he’s a game-changer, especially on the defensive end.
5. JC: No disrespect to George Blaney, but Jim Calhoun’s leadership certainly makes a difference. He didn’t win three national championships by accident.
Follow all the action from your computer and join our live chat. We’ll be answering questions and providing analysis that you can’t find on the ESPN GameTracker. The coverage will start at approximately 11:45 a.m. and take you through the end of UConn’s first round game against DePaul.
UConn begins play in the Big East tournament tomorrow at noon, when the ninth-seeded Huskies play 16th-seeded DePaul in the opening round at Madison Square Garden.
With the Huskies looking to wrap up a spot in the NCAA tournament — and maybe even reenact some of the magic from last year’s title run — here are 10 players whose performances will play a big role in deciding how things play out.
Click “show caption” and look through the slideshow to see beat writer Kevin Duffy’s rankings, then leave a comment to tell us how you’d rank them.
(And as an added bonus, see how we manged to get a cameo from Charles Okwandu into the slideshow).
Saturday was a good day in HuskyLand: Jim Calhoun returned, the Huskies pulled away from Pitt in a must-win situation, and then the chips fell perfectly for UConn to move into the No. 9 seed, which gives it a much easier road to the Big East quarterfinals.
Given UConn’s strength of schedule and RPI, it should be safe with wins over DePaul and West Virginia in the Big East tournament. If the Huskies don’t reach the quarters, though, they could be a little uneasy on Selection Sunday. As George Blaney said, UConn needs to “take it out of the committee’s hands.”
Here’s a look at UConn’s tournament resume in comparison to other Big East bubble teams:
RECORD: 18-12 (8-10 Big East)
BEST WINS: at Notre Dame, vs. Harvard, vs. Florida State, vs. West Virginia
WORST LOSSES: at Rutgers, at Providence, vs. Central Florida, at Louisville (by 21), at Seton Hall
SOS: 3
RPI: 34
EYEBALL TEST: Not great, but not terrible, either. UConn is playing well in spurts, and played a pretty solid game Saturday versus Pittsburgh. But, in the past week, the Huskies let a 14-point lead slip away at Providence and allowed Pitt to come roaring back from a 15-point deficit to take the lead.
TODAY’S PROJECTIONS:
ESPN — No. 12 seed vs. No. 5 Florida (Lunardi has 10 Big East teams in the field).
BEST WINS: vs. Georgetown, vs. South Florida, vs. Cincinnati
WORST LOSSES: at Pitt, at Kent State, at St. John’s
SOS: 13
RPI: 46
EYEBALL TEST: Much like UConn,WVU stumbled down the stretch. The Mountaineers lost seven of nine before winning their last two, including a road game at South Florida in the regular season finale.
EDGE: Right now, it’s UConn, but if the Mountaineers knock off the Huskies in the Big East tournament, they may move ahead. That second-round matchup could potentially be an “elimination game.”
SETON HALL
RECORD: 19-11 (8-10)
BEST WINS: vs. Georgetown, vs. UConn, vs. West Virginia, vs. VCU
WORST LOSSES: at DePaul, vs. Rutgers, at Villanova
SOS: 48
RPI: 60
EYEBALL TEST: Who knows? The Pirates beat Georgetown, then lost to Rutgers and were embarrassed by DePaul (yes, that sentence has actually been written) on Saturday night. Seton Hall’s losses are ugly, and it has some work to do in New York if it wants a tourney bid.
EDGE: UConn.
SOUTH FLORIDA
RECORD: 19-12 (12-6)
BEST WINS: at Louisville, vs. Cincinnati
WORST LOSSES: at Georgetown (by 30), vs. Old Dominion, at VCU (by 23), at Auburn
SOS: 24
RPI: 46
EYEBALL TEST: USF solidified its spot in the field with victories over Louisville and Cincinnati in late February. Prior to that, the Bulls really didn’t have any quality wins.
EDGE: South Florida. Yes, UConn beat USF, but you can’t exclude a team that won 12 Big East games, even if it doubled up on Providence and Villanova.
THE NON-CONFERENCE REPORT: UConn controls its own destiny (win two at MSG and it should be safe), but the mid-major conference tournaments could impact the Huskies, as well. UConn (along with USF, West Virginia and Seton Hall) should be happy after Sunday. Creighton, which went to overtime with Illinois State, would have stolen an at-large bid if it lost. Instead, the Blue Jays pulled away in the extra session and won the league’s automatic bid to the tournament. Likewise, Murray State took care of business Saturday.
